WITH barely a week left for campaigning in Kerala, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) is clearly ahead of its rivals – the Congress-led United Democratic Front and the BJP-BDJS alliance. After the withdrawal of nominations, a total of 227 candidates remain in the fray in the 20 parliamentary constituencies in the state.For the past one month, LDF candidates and workers have been on the ground, reaching out to people. Because of factionalism and delay in announcing its candidates, the UDF was late in electioneering. BJP-BDJS alliance candidates are also in the field.

MODI and Edappadi governments in the centre and the state should go, said national leaders of the CPI(M) at their election campaign in Tamil Nadu.Sitaram Yechury, general secretary, Prakash Karat and Brinda Karat, Polit Bureau members of the party, toured across Tamil Nadu for three days and campaigned for the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) in the state.Sitaram Yechury addressing a massive gathering at Kovilpatti in Thoothukudi constituency in support of Kanimozhi, DMK candidate, said that the manifesto of the BJP is just another ‘jumla’.

EVOKING strong regional, chauvinist and communal feelings and harping on Gujarati Modi for PM, the BJP swept all the 26 Lok Sabha seats from Gujarat in 2014. The main opposition, the Congress party, came a cropper. The BJP had polled 60.11 per cent of the polled votes as against 33.45 of the Congress. Three years later, in the contest for the assembly, things had changed. The BJP which had pompously set a target of 150 failed to reach the 100 mark, let alone retain the 115 seats it won in 2012.

WHILE the media in Bengal is desperate to frame a Modi-Mamata binary, the Left parties are breaking new grounds with intensive campaign. As the campaign gained momentum, it is amply clear that there is deep resentment, even anger, against TMC government amongst the people. The eight years of stagnation of economy, deep agricultural crisis, lack of jobs and loot by ruling class leaders at every level has sharpened anti-TMC mood.

TAMIL Nadu police, last week, denied permission for the release of booklets on Rafale scam and other issues exposing the BJP government and seized copies of the booklets, causing the ire of the general public, progressive writers and journalists.As part of the election campaign for Secular Progressive Front in Tamil Nadu, Bharathi Puthakalayam, a Chennai-based publisher, brought out booklets exposing the Modi government, one of which was a 48-page booklet in Tamil titled ‘Rafale: The Scam That Shook the Nation’, which explains the secret deal enacted by Modi, in a lucid manner.Eminent journ